The Barnabas Legacy: 45 Years of Skiff Racing Dominance

For nearly half a century, the Barnabas name has dominated Australian 18ft skiff racing with a consistency and success few athletes—let alone families—can claim. Trevor Barnabas and his son Trent have combined to claim eleven World championships, six national titles and five international victories, cementing their place as the sport's preeminent dynasty.

The Barnabas legacy began when Trevor stepped into the 18 footer arena in the 1979-80 season with the backing of Bonds clothing company. But his competitive pedigree ran deeper: before joining the 18s, Trevor had already established himself as a dominant force in the Manly 16ft skiff club, winning three consecutive Australian Championships and running an undefeated campaign in the 1978-79 season.

Trevor's move up to the 18s coincided with one of sport's most formidable runs. The Color 7 team, piloted by the legendary Iain Murray, dominated the class from 1978 through 1982, forcing rising skippers like Barnabas, Peter Sorensen and Rob Brown into their slipstream. When Color 7 finally retired after the 1981-82 season, those three emerged from the shadows ready to claim the sport's highest honors.

The battle that followed was fierce. Sorensen proved the quickest to succeed, recruiting Color 7's crucial crew member Andrew "Bucko" Buckland for his Tia Maria campaign and capturing back-to-back World titles in 1983 and 1984. Barnabas remained in the hunt, however, and the competitive fires burned brightest in 1985 when the Australian 18 Footers League staged one of the sport's most memorable spectacles.

The Ocean Challenge, marking the league's 50th anniversary, was unlike any race before it. Crews began on the Pittwater side of Palm Beach in a Le Mans-style dash to their boats, then sailed around the headland, ventured out to open water and raced 26 miles down the coast before finishing in Sydney Harbour east of the Opera House. After 1 hour 43 minutes of ocean racing at top speed, followed by a spinnaker match in the harbor, Trevor Barnabas and his crew—including Phil Barnett and Adam South—touched down just one second ahead of Sorensen's Tia Maria, claiming $2,000 prize money and an unforgettable victory.

That race marked a turning point. Barnabas went on to capture the 1985-86 Australian Championship and eventually claimed the first of his five World titles, cementing his standing as a champion in his own right.

The Barnabas legacy, however, transcended individual achievement when father and son achieved something no other family had managed. Trevor and Trent became only the second father-son pairing to both win the Giltinan World Championship, following Don and Phil Barnett. But they went further still, becoming the first and only father-son crew to win the championship sailing together—a feat they accomplished in 1997 that remains unmatched in the sport's history.